Relationship Between Sleep and Arthritis in a Middle-aged and Older Chinese Population- the China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study

Abstract Objective. To evaluate the relationship between sleep duration, sleep restless and arthritis in middle-aged and older Chinese population. Methods. A total of 4957 middle-aged and elderly people aged 45 years and above from The China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study (CHARLS) wave 3 were included. Multivariable logistic regression was used to calculate adjusted odds ratios (ORs) and 95 % confidence intervals (CIs) for arthritis. Results. Sleep duration was shown to have a U-shaped association with arthritis after adjusting confounding factors. Compared with <5h sleep duration per night, ORs (95 % CIs) of sleep duration 5-7,7-8 and 8-9 h per night for arthritis were 0.61 (0.52– 0.73, P value <0.001) ,0.47 (0.38-0.58, P value <0.001),0.50 (0.41,0.60, P value <0.001)and 0.50 (0.39–0.64, P value <0.001), respectively. Sleep restless was positively correlated with the prevalence of arthritis. After stratification according to sleep restless status, for those without sleep restless, 8-9 hours duration (OR=0.55, 95 % CI 0.39-0.78,P value=0.001)had the best protective effect on arthritis, while7-8 hours duration (OR=0.45, 95 % CI 0.34-0.60,P value <0.001)was best in people with sleep restless. Conclusion. In middle aged and old Chinese population, sleep duration is U-shaped associated with arthritis, and sleep restless affect the correlation.